Estimating

As the old saying goes, you never get a second chance at a first impression. An estimate is where the job plan begins. All information as to how the job will be produced most efficiently comes from a well-constructed estimate, which is then translated into the sales order and job ticket. If the estimate is not accurate and complete, neither is the job plan.

Quotes for all types of printing including small format (offset, digital), direct mail, grand/large format, and fulfillment

Support for customer-specific pricing

Contract and price list pricing

Fast access to standard products and product kits

Avanti Slingshot also includes a Large/Grand Format estimating module, winner of a 2015 MUST SEE’EM, that uses specialized algorithms to reduce the complexity of estimating and managing large and grand format jobs. It includes consideration of material requirements, ink coverage, edge sealing and more, to fully cover all aspects of the process. This module also includes a real-time view of job costing, tracking, and billing information.

Sales Orders

Being fast and nimble in business can sometimes make the difference between getting the prize and being left in the dust. Your Print MIS order entry should be quick, easy to use, and have the ability to leverage other information from within your business.

Avanti Slingshot’s Sales Order module provides multiple benefits, including the ability to create new orders, copy previous jobs for re-order, or have the order populate from the Estimating Module. Along with each order, a job ticket is automatically created and can be viewed as a hard copy or electronically. You can even attach additional files that contain information/specs on the order.

Some additional benefits include:

Smooth integration with other Avanti Slingshot modules. You don’t have to continually re-enter data.

Integration with industry-leading Web-to Print solutions

A quick-to-learn and easy-to-use Graphical User Interface (GUI)

Calculation of your costs and price as you add the job…without an estimate needed

The ability to save templates for future use

Generation of both job tickets and pick lists for sales orders

Job Ticketing

Barcodes were a game-changing invention – removing the need to key in a code every time an item is bought at a store saves huge amounts of time and reduces chance for error. Most commonly found on the Job Ticket, the barcode can be custom-designed so the job number will be where you need it and where it makes sense for your business. With the barcode in place on the ticket, retrieving the information on that job becomes quick and easy. Avanti Slingshot’s Job Ticketing module gives you the opportunity to speed up data entry and reduce errors as well. As an ‘alternate keyboard input’ your team members have the option to either key in a job number or scan it to receive all the information about the job.

Benefits include:

Boost Productivity by streamlining data collection through barcoding

Quicker look-up of each job by reading the Job Number off of the Job Ticket

Shop Floor Data Collection: give each operator their own barcode so that they can wand their badge to identify themselves to the system

Collect time and material against Machines and Operations/Cost Centers

Dynamic Job Ticket: all information is transferred from the Sales Order module to a number of customizable Job Ticket formats.

Change Orders

Change comes and goes like the rain. It can be small, needed, or unappreciated. When customers make a change, it can sometimes lead to big headaches, yet more and more printers are expected to be flexible and turn on a dime.

Once a job has been entered into the Sales Order module, any client changes that affect the cost and/or selling price of the job will be recorded within the Change Orders module. A job change order is then printed for production along with a notice for the customer. A message is also sent to the shop floor and updates the pricing data so that the changes are highlighted prior to invoicing.

Inventory Management

Staying on top of when to reorder inventory and tracking all the costs that go along with it is a never-ending and often thankless job. How much time are you spending? How many resources are being allocated? Because while you focus on counts, the creative, sales and customer connections are sidelined. What if you could instead focus on what you care about most, like growing your business?

Avanti Slingshot’s Inventory module gives you the ability to completely manage both raw and finished goods in real-time. Automated re-order, low inventory reporting, and tracking various materials, all included with the module, can make your job much easier, freeing you up to focus on other business-building projects.

Avanti Slingshot’s Roll Inventory module includes many of the benefits of the above, but with enhanced abilities for complete control of individual rolls, while accepting input from portable barcode readers for the receipt or movement of rolls.

Track receipt dates to ensure rolls used in a First In, First Out (FIFO) fashion

Track and store roll inventory specifics like stock and weight

Automatically commit inventory stock to job orders

Store detailed inventory location information

Job Costing & Tracking

Tracking jobs and their costs is not easy when you manage hundreds of jobs. Margin is a top concern amongst owners, presidents and finance executives. How do you know where you’re making money? How do you know where you’re bleeding dollars? Now add employees and inventory and customer demands. It’s overwhelming. Avanti Slingshot’s Job Manager module is a one-stop source for information on your jobs, past and present. Full integration with other Avanti Slingshot modules gives your employees real-time insight into job costing/tracking, job profitability, invoicing, and more. It gives your employees the ability to answer customer questions and requests instantly. And it gives executives the information they need. When they need it.

Additional benefits include:

Real-time updates on where your job exists in the overall production workflow

Advanced searches so that you can easily locate jobs, monitor equipment use and improve employee efficiency

Reports of equipment usage and estimate-to-job summary over different time periods

Shipping

For some customers, getting a fresh shipment of freshly printed material is like Christmas morning. And no one likes when a gift is delivered late. With Avanti Slingshot’s Shipping module, you are not only able to easily integrate with UPS, Purolator, and FedEx, but you are able track shipments after simply transferring the shipping and billing information to them. Ensuring that your customers receive their gifts on time just got a lot easier. Additional highlights include:

Integration with all other Avanti Slingshot modules.

Fewer errors due to re-keying as all shipping information is automatically transferred for Packing slips and Carton/Skid labels, detailing what is being shipped and to where

Automatic transfer of UPS or FedEx systems tracking numbers and all costing information back to Avanti Slingshot

Ability to handle unlimited “ship to” locations on an item-by-item basis, or for the entire job. Entering multiple shipments at one time? You are able to enter a unique quantity and ship date for each shipment.

Customizable labels to make the package ‘yours’

Reporting

When buying a new car, all of the available options and features can be so tempting… have you ever walked out of the dealership with something more than you intended, then lived to regret it? Maybe if there had been a chart telling you how it would affect you, you would have made a better decision. After all, they say that decision support through reporting is the key to making the right choices in your business.

With numerous standard reports, Avanti Slingshot’s Reporting module can help you make sense of all your Print MIS data. From extensive costing, job tracking, and efficiency analytics, you can gain valuable insight into your business’ past, present, and close future. Learning how to save money and time just got easier.

At Avanti, our goal is to help you deliver more jobs, in less time, with the confidence in knowing that every aspect of your shop is integrated into one powerful platform. Since 1984, Avanti has provided innovative, award-winning Print MIS solutions that help print shops and marketing communication organizations automate all facets of their business and cultivate a more meaningful customer relationship. Avanti’s solutions are the most open in the industry; are JDF-certified, fully integrated, and extend from online order entry through to production and billing.